A food plate provides a food-bearing surface for serving and eating food. It is common for meat, vegetables, and either potatoes or rice to be placed on the same plate. Depending on how the meat, vegetables, and potatoes/rice are prepared, it is not unusual for liquid, such as water, butter or sauce, from the vegetables to come in contact with the other food on the plate. Likewise, toppings on potatoes/rice, such as gravy, sauce, butter and/or sour cream, can contact the other food on the plate. Natural juices and fat/grease from meat, as well as sauce or gravy, as the case may be, also can contact other food on the plate. While some individuals are not bothered by this and, perhaps, even prefer it, other individuals do not like one food item to come in contact with another item, whether it is due to the impact of such contact on flavor, an underlying obsessive-compulsive disorder, special needs, a dietary restriction, or other reason. Divided plates have been proposed to keep food items on a plate separate from each other. However, divided plates are disadvantageous in that it can be difficult for certain people to eat off a divided plate. Furthermore, divided plates do not eliminate the problem of vegetables sitting in liquid, such as water, and meat sitting in fat/grease. Scooper plates and plate guards have been proposed to aid (i) individuals with physical disabilities, such as those with hand tremors (e.g., individuals with Parkinson's disease), uncontrolled movement of the hands, restricted movement of the hands (e.g., individuals with arthritis or partial paralysis or recovering from stroke), injuries, and birth defects, (ii) children, who are learning to eat, and (iii) individuals with various types of mental/learning disabilities, to eat off of plates by providing a plate with a graduated side wall that is shallow on one side and deep on the other (see, e.g., Freedom Dinnerware Scooper Plate, which is available from www.arthritissupplies.com) or a truncated side wall (see, e.g., plate guards available from Arthritis Supplies's website and My Plate-Mate™, which is available from www.myplate-mate.com). Scooper plates, which come in flat and divided versions, and plate guards, however, still do not address the problem of vegetables sitting in liquid, such as water, and meat sitting in fat/grease.
In addition to the above, it is also common for a food item to be placed on the same plate with a topping, such as a sauce or a syrup, or condiment, such as ketchup, with which it is intended to be eaten. Unfortunately, many such food items become soggy when left in contact with such a topping, even for the length of time it takes to eat the food item. Sometimes, the food item becomes unpalatable as a result, either due to texture and/or flavor (e.g., becoming too sweet). Keeping the liquid topping in a separate container (e.g., a small bowl or a condiment cup) has been proposed to address this problem. However, when the separate container is kept on the plate, it can interfere with eating off the plate, and, when the separate container is kept beside the plate, drips between the container and the plate often result as do spills, thereby creating a mess to clean up. Divided plates also have been proposed to address this problem. However, as noted above, it can be difficult for certain people to eat off a divided plate.
In view of the above, there remains a need for a food plate that (i) is easy for a person, including a person with a disability, to eat off, (ii) minimizes, and preferably eliminates, vegetables sitting in liquid and meat sitting in fat/grease, and (iii) keeps a food item and a liquid topping separate in a way that does not interfere with eating off the food plate and minimizes, and preferably eliminates, messiness. It is an object of the present disclosure to provide such a food plate. This and other objects and advantages, as well as inventive features, will become apparent from the detailed description provided herein.